Ah, shit.
He's scared him. Fuck. Guilt instantly swamped him, tightening his chest. He quickly drew his arm back, trying to give Mikhail some space.
Guilt was quickly followed by rage that he was used to it. He shouldn't be surprised, really. He shouldn't be having this strong of a reaction, he just...was.
Okay. Breathe.
"Look, Mikhail." He sighed, running his fingers awkwardly through his hair. They'd nearly reached the treeline now, though he didn't entirely seem to notice, adjusting his step easily to muffle the noise he made in the underbrush. "I'm...sorry. I didn't--I didn't mean to scare you. Back there. I really shouldn't have...reacted like that. But I don't want you to think--"
He paused, sighed through his nose, closed his eyes. Damnit, he was so bad at talking to people. "You're your own person," he muttered eventually. "You get to decide...what you do. How you do it. Who...who you want to do it with. Whatever. I don't want you to think I'm...trying to control you, or tell you what to do. But I also don't--"
He growled, frustrated. He couldn't figure out how to say it. "I don't have to do anything. I want to help you. It's really not some sort of burden. And I don't want you to feel like...like that's how you have to get by in the world. Like..."
His breath left him in a huff as he trailed off and shook his head. "Still, I--I shouldn't have done that. I think I frightened you, and I'm sorry."